Minecraft: The Rise of a Legend
by Sidney.H
Summary: Join Steve as he explores Minecraft and fights a deadly foe with unseen friends. C'mon click the title! :)


Steve sat upright, breathing hard as he awoke from another nightmare. Looking around, he found that he was still inside his horrible dream, with the block-like structures and pixel world. He shook his head, even banged it on the ground, willing the nightmare to go away. When he looked up, it was still there, leering at him.

In frustration, Steve yelled out. "WHERE AM I!?"

Only the wind, the waving of the trees, and the night silence answered him. Then, he heard a moaning sound. Over the crest of a hill, he saw a greenish... monster approach him. Somehow, someway, it looked very similar to a zombie in his "real life," though Steve wasn't sure what "real" was anymore. He was trapped. He was trapped in this fake dream he couldn't wake up from. No time to think, Steve ran from the monster as it chased him, though it was considerably slower. Steve scrambled over blocks and tripped multiple times, but doggedly sprinted to escape the dreaded zombie. In the distant horizon, he saw light appear. "_It must be the sun rising_" he thought. Just as Steve thought he was able to see where he was going, a light-green, plant like creature without any arms spotted him and started to shuffle towards him.

"Uh... what?" Steve questioned.

The creature kept shuffling towards him, and did it make a hissing sound?

When it was only a few feet, or blocks, he should say, it flashed white and made a loud hissing sound. Steve could only associate it to one thing: a bomb. In a flash Steve dove to the ground, away from the monster, but it was too late. The blast knocked Steve back several blocks before he crashed into the ground, where his mind was spinning. The sun was in view by now, and strangely, he could see the zombie light on fire as it fell to the ground, writhing in pain. Steve got up from the ground and shook his head, trying to clear it from the dizziness. Clearly, now was the time to gather "resources," however he could. Remembering his survival lessons that he thought were a waste of time, he knew that trees were needed for fire, and wood was his top priority. But he had no way of obtaining the thick wood that grew on trees, and there seemed to not be any twigs or branches around. There had to be something... Steve knew he had to do something... and quick. Noon was approaching, and it seemed that his time was draining away. Without thinking, he walked up to a tree, and... punched it. It didn't hurt. His hand didn't break. Instead, tiny cracks splintered and expanded to engulf the entire block, and instead of breaking into millions of pieces, an audible _pop _could be heard as it broke into a smaller size and fitted into the palm of Steve's hand.

He simply stared at it in amazement. Then he looked around, and realized every _single _block here could fit into his hands, and even his pockets. Excitedly, he started punching another block, realizing maybe it wasn't the end. He could survive, he could thrive and start to live here. With five blocks of wood in his hands, he wondered what to do with it next. To make tools and basic survival items... he would need a method of obtaining food, and someway to build a shelter. Food, water, and shelter. The primary principles of life. In his mind, a small 2X2 crafting grid appeared. He put all five blocks of wood into one grid, finding it gave him 4 wood planks for each block of wood. Now taking the four planks, he put one in each grid, surprised to find it gave him a a crafting table. It fit into his palm, but when he placed it on the ground, it expanded to one full block. He accessed the crafting table, but could find no combination to find another useful item. Noon came and went... Steve was getting hungry, and he still felt a little dizzy and groggy from that last explosion.

Then, an idea came to mind. He'd seen some sheep and cows from his previous dash from the zombie. Maybe he could kill them somehow. He journeyed back to his old spot, but the animals were gone. He would have to wait it out. Then, he thought of something else. To make basic wooden tools, he would need sticks. Frantically, he put all the wooden planks until they were stacked in columns of two, and it gave him 26 sticks. Great. Now what.

Putting one stick at the bottom of the crafting table, he put two wood planks above it, and, to his surprise, he received a wooden sword. The afternoon was almost done, and night would follow close behind. Steve rushed out, immediately spotting a cow 15 blocks away. He dashed up, and hit the animal with his sword. Two hits brought the beast down. Immediately he shoved some raw beef into his mouth, despite it being raw. The first piece he ate restored most of his stomach, and he instantly started feeling better. The sun was setting, so Steve decided to punch down another tree before returning back to his crafting table. _SHELTER._ Looking around, he saw a dirt wall under a hill, so he broke some of the dirt, and moved in, making sure to bring the table with him. He closed back the entrance with dirt blocks, then he went back to the table, making more wood planks. Steve knew that the sticks were a main key, so after two hours of exploring with the crafting table, he had created a wooden pickaxe, a shovel, and an axe. The information was immediately stored away into his head, and he decided to test out the pickaxe on stone. This time, the cracks spread much faster, and the block broke into a smaller form. However, it didn't give him stone... instead Steve received a block of cobblestone. He mined more, and more until suddenly his worn-out wooden pickaxe broke, leaving him empty-handed. _Great. Now I gotta go punch a tree again._

However, another thought came to mind. Going back to his crafting table, he put the same ingredient in for a wooden pickaxe, but instead, he replaced the planks with cobblestone. BAM. A stone pickaxe was what he received. As the second day's light faded away, Steve sat down to think. Having a bed here would do well, maybe he could sleep through the night. To make a bed... you needed... wood? He had much of that. What else? _Wool, _he thought. That was it. However, Steve was afraid to sleep. Could the nightmare's get into his head through this nightmare he was in? He let the thought linger as he slept uncomfortably propped up against the dirt wall

CHAPTER 2 -

The next day Steve dashed out into the sunlight, cobblestone sword ready for any signs of danger. All there was was a combusted zombie way too busy trying to save himself than to notice him. Looking around for sheep, Steve approached his old mine, and ate another piece of raw beef. However, the food made him sick, and he fell to the ground, grasping his stomach. After a while the pain subsided, but he realized he had gotten hungrier. Nevertheless, Steve resumed his obtaining of cobblestone, until he reached a block containing dark spots. He mined through that, and the block gave him coal. _Coal. I could use that for fires. Fire. Cooked food._ With an excited gasp, Steve renewed his attack on the coal, taking 8 pieces of coal. Another while of mining awarded him with iron ore, but he didn't know what to do with it. After another while, he found 10 more iron ore, but it was worthless. He ascended to the surface, happy that now he was finally getting the hang of things and that he could look forward to a nice, cooked meal tonight.

It was night. Immediately Steve knew that he had stayed too long. He had been obsessed with the mine, and now he was about to pay the price. His eyes darted around until he saw his "bunker" not 100 blocks away. He sprinted straight for the dirt shelter, looking around for enemies. Suddenly, a whiz flashed right in front of his face and an arrow buried itself into the adjacent tree. Turning, he saw three skeletons appear from behind a bush, armed with arrows. His eyes widened, and he took off. Right before he could reach the hut another green monster appeared in front of him. Steve managed to strike it in the chest with his sword before turning and running back the way he came. Two zombies appeared from a hole, and now he had gone from three to five enemies now. He sprinted for a while, grabbed his sword, and turned to face his nemesis. The plant monster was still a considerable distance away. The zombies were closest, gaining ground quickly. Steve ran towards the first one, cutting off its arm and turning around to stab the other one through the chest. Ducking what could be a lethal bite, he beheaded one, then sliced the other's leg off before kicking it down a cliff. An arrow buried itself into his arm.

"GAHHH!" Steve roared, dropping his sword to clutch his left arm.

He stumbled away from the trio, an arrow striking at his feet. Just when it looked like things were over, another arrow blasted from inside a tree, striking one of the skeletons in the head, killing it instantly. The other two looked around confusingly, thinking the other had shot their friend. While the commotion was going on, Steve spotted a figure dash from behind the skeletons. He was armed with a pickaxe. This one was shinier than the one Steve had, and the cloaked figure used it to behead one skeleton and smash the other's body apart. The person approached Steve, then held out a hand. Quickly, Steve grasped it before falling unconscious.

He felt like it was the beginning: His head throbbing, he was scared, he didn't know where he was. However, he was lying in a bed, and it was very comfortable to his sore joints and muscles. There was a crafting table right next to him, and three other blocks he didn't recognize. Someone approached him. He had brown hair, light skin, and deep brown eyes.

"Hey. I'm Jerome," he said.

"Steve," Steve replied, stretching out his right hand.

Jerome took it and shook the hand, smiling.

"I always thought I was alone in this nightmare. You're not real, are you?" Steve inquired, raising an eyebrow.

"Of course I am. It's the Deathless Witch that got us all."

"Deathless Witch?"

"Yea. She's the one who took us from the real world: Earth and put us in one of her game worlds. Apparently, she's got a stronghold atop a mountain, and we're determined to take it down," Jerome said. Steve saw a determined fire burn in his eyes.

"Uh... what? I don't understand, sorry. We? How are we supposed to do that? How big is the stronghold?"

"Slow down, I'll show you around. You and I aren't the only ones here. That arrow only disabled your left arm for about 2 weeks. You can still walk around. Just don't break it or anything."

Steve followed Jerome out of the "hospital" and into the grand hall. It actually wasn't a grand hall. It was an underground cavern, with hundreds of people bustling about, fortifying entrances, carrying weapons and metal, and an assortment of other items.

"Welcome to the Resistance Force, Steve," Jerome said. " You're just another unlucky fellow here, like every single one of us."

Steve stared around in amazement. There were giant, iron giants prowling about, perhaps protecting the underground fortress.

"Woah... you're messing up my mind here. What's that? And that? And that? Ooh, and what's that?" Steve said, pointing at dozens of things as they passed by him.

"Slow down, my friend! I will teach you of everything in good time."

Steve was ushered down a hallway and into a room made of dark blocks.

" Eric, we have a newcomer," Jerome said to another person about his age.

"Ah! Welcome! You have been on a long journey, yes? I'm Eric, the Rebellion Force leader. Pleased to meet you."

Steve shook his hand and introduced himself.

" Had a wrangling with them skellies huh? You're tough," laughed Eric.

"Would've been killed if it weren't for him," Steve replied, pointing at Jerome.

The three shared a laugh, and Steve could already feel himself grow a bond between these people.

"We'll have your living quarters assigned, and we'll have Jerome teach you everything about this world... and why we're here."

The solemn ending made a good farewell as Jerome and Steve turned to leave.

CHAPTER 3 -

Steve had learned everything about this world. He had learned about the monsters, redstone, iron, what every block was and how to identify them, the different levels of tools, enchanting and the tables, and most importantly, he had learned and seen for himself the massiveness of the witch's stronghold. There was approximately 5,000 people here. 2 years of mining had given them the iron and diamond ore they needed to defeat the witch. There was also approximately 60,000 arrows, of which 64 were given to each person. Each soldier also received three potions of healing and 5 loaves of bread. Medics on the battlefield we're given ten potions of healing, and three buckets of water. Eric made sure each person had full iron armor or better, and now, it was time to attack.

Steve had iron boots of which he enchanted, and diamond leggings, chest plate, and an iron helmet. Additionally he was equipped with a fire diamond sword and a bow with knockback 3 and flame 1. The Rebellion Force surrounded the mountain, and slowly started to advance. When they were halfway up, the day turned to night, and the bottommost section of the stronghold opened to reveal an army of zombies. While builders scrambled to assemble a defensive line, Steve and the others fired hundreds of arrows into the zombie line. Dozens of enemy zombies fell under the fire, and it wasn't long before the witch sent out creepers and skeletons to return fire at the rebellion. Now with a defensive cobblestone wall established, the attackers took cover as an unexpected volley of arrows struck some of the soldiers. All to the distraction, hundreds of wither skeletons charged full force down towards the soldiers.

"IRON GOLEMS! GET THE IRON GOLEMS!" Eric yelled over the sounds of battle.

The builders ran out in front, relying on the cover of the soldiers as they assembled iron T's and quickly dodged back in, only a few casualties. When the withers got closer, the builder put pumpkins down, forming a wall of iron golems smashing the withers into the sky. A soldier was suddenly struck by an arrow, falling off the wall and crashing to the ground. Then came the worst. From the top of the stronghold, a huge opening appeared. As the skeletons retreated and the last were shot, a wave of ghasts appeared from atop the stronghold, drifting towards the Rebellion Force.

"Roof!" Eric yelled.

Immediately a cobblestone roof was erected over the attackers, and right when it finished the first explosive crashed into the bunker.

"Pass the word. We need ten TNT cannons ready to fire as soon as we take down those ghasts."

More explosions rocked the cobblestone structure, but it didn't give in. Steve and the attackers took a little break, drinking water and eating some bread as the builders hastened to construct TNT cannons. Steve, part of the elite team, was selected to go up and deal with the ghasts. This was his first time fighting such as beast, and there was certainly some nervousness inside him, but he knew how to fight them, and bravely climbed on top of the cobblestone roof and bravely faced them with his fists. A fire charge cam streaking at him, and, frozen by fear, Jerome tackled him out of the way as the charge exploded two blocks away.

"That was close," Jerome said, expertly punching a fire charge back to its owner. The group of fifty ghasts were beaten down to 20... then 10... then there was none as the last was knocked down by Steve's hand.

"Good job. Now let's take down part of the wall, but keep the roof," Jerome said.

They worked quickly and efficiently with the builders, and now all ten TNT cannons were pointed straight at the castle.

"FIRE!" Eric yelled.

Ten blasts in close succession launched a primed block of explosives at the mossy cobblestone wall. As they smashed into the stone, it was apparent that this wall was built several blocks deep. Only one TNT managed to expose a small opening. They would need more.

"Reload...Ready! FIRE!" Eric yelled again.

Two shots went wide this time and three more flew too high. The remaining five scored shots into the castle. A wall crumbled and fell down, revealing an entrance. Surely, it was trapped though. Then the tide turned to the rebel side. The explosion released a horde of creepers waiting inside, and now they activated pressure plates as they advanced towards the attackers. A large pit opened, showing an endless fall to the bottom of the pit... and dozens of surprised creepers fell in before the rest stopped, searching for a way around. Then a volley of arrows struck them, and the burning creepers fell into the chasm... Another round of TNT opened three more passageways into the stronghold. As the attackers made an all out sprint for the stronghold, a surprising turn threw them back. Someone had triggered a trap, and now the harmless dirt blocks in front of them were gone and a wall of angry blazes rose from it, ready to fire. As the soldiers fumbled for their bows, a salvo of fire point-blank struck down 40 troops instantaneously. As the arrows started firing, the wither skeletons made a return as the last of the horde turned desperately to stall for time. There was a massive battle as both sides clashed in a fury of swords and arrows.

"Eric! We're running low on potions!" Steve reported, dashing up to the leader.

" Let's retreat and take the withers down with arrows. Get the builders to move the cobblestone line forward, just in case."

"Got it."

As the command spread down the line of battle, the soldiers retreated back and started using bows against their foe. More arrows joined the deadly flight as they struck down countless numbers of the wither horde. After most withers were dead, the rebellion charged at the castle, regardless of the blazes. Fire rained down from atop as those blazes in the way were knocked down. Once inside, the builders patched up the holes, and now there were three groups. Only 4,200 soldiers survived the firefight. Their goal was to regroup and kill the Deathless Witch to free themselves. Steve's group of 1,400 soldiers split up into groups of 8 to explore the castle and destroy and key resources or defenses before the throne room. Steve was put in with Jerome, Eric, a skilled bowman named Alex, and others he did not know, but assumed were of the elite class.

"Alright. You've all got compasses that point towards the nearest group. May light speed be with you all," Eric lectured. "Let's finish this!"

A roar of approval erupted from the assembly, and everyone dove into the narrow hallways that were most likely full of traps. There were passageways going up and down, even one that went back the way they came. The teams split up, and soon, Steve's group was left to itself to explore a long hallway.

"Shears and picks at the ready. Look for tripwire and pressure plates."

Suddenly, an explosion not far away echoed down the hallway, and more explosions quickly followed. Steve watched his compass immediately move from left to right. Eric looked down in silent prayer and mourning. A team had triggered some sort of explosive trap and either they were all killed or some injured. However, they continued down the hall. They passed a block, and Steve heard a mechanism gears whirring from behind the wall.

"STOP! LOOK OUT!" he yelled.

He dove for the ground, but no explosion or pit opened up in front of them. Instead, 10 wither skeletons appeared 15 blocks away and instantly targeted the group. The team dashed angry looks at Steve as they sprinted down the hall. However, Steve knew something was missing. The withers were easy to outrun... provided they dash. And when they dash...

"STOP!" he yelled again.

"What, Steve?!" Eric exclaimed. "They're gaining on us!"

Steve's hand flew out to catch Eric's shoulder right before he stepped forward one more block. Both looked down to see a pressure plate just waiting for something to press on it. Steve quickly broke it, and the team proceeded by safely before he replaced the block, and they retreated a good distance to watch the wither skeletons. As the first triggered the block, a hole opened up, four blocks in length, and it emptied into a twenty block deep hole filled with lava. The withers did not die, but at the moment they were completely trapped.

"I-I- I'm sorry," Eric said, hanging his head.

"No. You're just doing what you think is best for us. Carry on, Eric," Steve consoled him.

The team continued down the hall again, and this time another trap sprang from the depths. Suddenly the walls on either side disappeared, and from out of the darkness multiple creepers came at them from all sides. Steve could see the other side where the hallway continued, but first there was a dark cave in the middle, most likely full of enemies.

"Get back! We can take them in the hall!" Eric ordered. Before they could however, creepers appeared from behind them, too. There was no choice but to fight them. A sprint-attack battle developed as the eight tried to fight back the horde of creepers. Suddenly, an explosion threw one of the team members to the ground, but he got up and resumed attack. Steve sliced one creepers head off, then turned and kicked one away as it exploded and threw its friends against the stone wall. Eric, Jerome, and Steve backed up into a triangle as they effectively took down creeper after creeper. Another explosion threw the same person into a wall where he lay still. The fight went on for 15 more minutes in which 6 creepers blew up and injured some. The person that was hit by two creepers sadly died, and the crew paid their final respects before continuing down the passage. They encountered a few more traps, but were easily avoidable. They lost a two soldiers when they triggered a pressure plate that threw up a wall of bedrock, blocking two from the rest of the team. Only 5 remained: Eric, Steve, Jerome, Alex and another soldier. Two passageways crossed at an intersection, and it was here that Eric's group met up with another's.

"So? How's it been with you guys?" Eric asked.

"Not too bad... we lost one to a ghast," the team leader replied.

"Oh. I'm sorry." Eric quickly reported his group. "But their deaths must NOT be in vain. We must defeat the Witch."

After a brief dismissal, both groups proceeded down their own paths. Down the hallway, there could be heard loud yelling and metal clashing.

"Hurry!" Eric yelled.

Thankfully, there was no trap as the five members found themselves in a large cavern, where hundreds of soldiers were fighting for their life against a monstrous horde of endermen, creepers, zombies, and wither skeletons. Archers backed them up.

"Let's join the fight!"

Steve rushed down, then realized there was a creeper behind him. He threw his arms up to abate the pain, but no explosion was forthcoming. As he looked up, there was an arrow through the creeper's head, and he saw Alex give him a thumbs up. Smiling, he waved his sword before diving into the fray.

CHAPTER 4 -

Steve vaguely remembered goring many monsters as their blood sprayed the floor and him. Then there was a massive explosion and he remembered stumbling out of the smoke with Jerome. He had no clue as to what happened to the rest of his team, but there he was. Jerome led him into another passageway, where they collapsed down onto the stone floor, panting and groping for their bread.

"We're screwed," Jerome suddenly said. He pointed out into the cave again, where Steve saw a wither skeleton advancing on them.  
Both were way too tired to fight, and Steve simply tried to hide. Right when the monster was about to enter the tunnel, a flurry of green and gray collapsed down onto the wither and it fell. Standing upright, Alex withdrew his knife and sheathed it.

"0 for 2," Steve shook his head.

"Naw, don't count it. According to my compass... there's only 2,000 of us left."

Steve almost choked on his bread.

"WHAT?!"

"Yep. That last explosion took out a bloody 700 of our troops. I saw you guys stumble out. I don't think anyone else survived."

"Eric?" Jerome asked.

"Gone... or..." Alex didn't finish the sentence.

Another figure stumbled towards them through the post-battle haze. Now with half their health refilled, Alex, Jerome, and Steve stood up to watch this figure. As he got closer, they realized that he was a builder, and that they would need him... crucially. All three rushed towards the person, offering support to take his belongings and helped him up against the wall. He made an eating motion, and the trio gave him a potion of healing before giving him two loaves of bread to eat.

"I've... I've got wool in my bag."

Wool? Why do they need wool right now? Steve came up with the answer.

"Of course! A bed! That would heal him pronto!"

They grabbed the crafting table in his bag, made a bed, and lowered the injured builder onto it as they waited for him to heal. Jerome took watch as Steve and Alex went to sleep. After 5 hours, they woke up to find that the builder had built a makeshift hut out of dirt and had torches, and the place was warm. All three were lying snug in beds with their armor off.

"Sorry for taking your armor off..." he apologized. "But you saved my life... for that I'm very grateful."

"Looks like there's a lot of owing..." Steve said, looking at Alex, who grinned. "So... what's your story?"

"The massive explosion, of which I'm sure you all know about, was already planned to happen. There was a massive amount of TNT underneath the cave, and it was the least I could do to lock myself in obsidian with an iron door facing away, so the blast destroyed everything. After getting out, I collected all the materials that I could... and I found Eric, you know, the leader."

"Is he OK?" Jerome asked. Alex and Steve leaned in to hear the builder's next words.

"I-I- no."

The shocking news delivered, it was all Steve could do to put his head in his hands and silently mourn.

"However. He wanted to give this to someone by the name of Steve."

"That's me!" Steve said, jumping up.

"As he was dying, his last words were : 'Steve. Find Steve. He is the one who can lead us to victory. He can lead us to salvation. Give him this ring. Tell him... tell him it can defeat the Deathless.'

Steve touched the ring, and it glowed blue. As soon as he did, a blinding aqua light filled the room and when it died down, Steve was clad in full enchanted diamond. In his hands were an enchanted diamond sword and a bow with flame and infinity. The others stared at him in amazement.

"Steve?" Jerome asked.

Steve could only stare at his glistening armor, not even a scratch in it.

"Uh... whoa."

"You... you truly are the chosen one!" the builder exclaimed, sinking to his knees.

"Well standing here and gawking at this gift won't help. Come on we have to get to the throne room!" Steve said.

The four stood up, packed up whatever they needed, and went off into the tunnel. The compass now swerved uncontrollably as there seemed not to be another team nearby.

"We're on our own," Alex said halfheartedly.

They ran for what seemed like an hour, took a small break, and ran off again, following signs that had been conveniently placed telling them wherever places were.

"Ok. This is it. The throne room should be up ahead, and if we're lucky the Deathless Witch will be there too. Then we can finish her," Steve said.

The others nodded, and slowly, they opened the door. The throne room was bathed in purple, red, and yellow. The whole place was lit up with glowstone, and massive pillars rose from the ground to the roof. Apparently, the largest commanders of all time were at a meeting with the witch, and Steve could see a supercharged creeper, a zombie in diamond and iron armor, a skeleton with an enchanted bow and dressed similarly to the zombie, a wither in full diamond, and the witch herself, seated at the top of an emerald throne, discussing with her advisers.

"The humans have already infiltrated our castle. That much we know. We have spies all throughout setting traps, and the last three of our zombie legions are being deployed. All our wither skeletons have been neutralized, unfortunately, but our skeleton army is still active. If at worst, you know what to do," the witch said, shooting a look at the creeper, who hissed and nodded.

"Now's the time," Jerome whispered. "We need a distraction. Builder, can... can you be bait while we sneak behind them?"

"You think we builders can't fight," the builder replied. "Heh heh... but you're wrong."

At that he drew out an iron pickaxe, and quickly sliced a two-inch thick wooden post right off.

"I got your back," he said, then ran off.

Two minutes later, a "confused" builder stumbled out into view of the congregation.

"Uh... hi. Can you show me the way out?" he said, looking around confusingly. Steve and Jerome ran three pillars down and hid.

"W-what... who are you?" the witch said, standing up. Her cohorts did the same. Steve and Jerome ran another five pillars behind them and ducked.

"I think I got lost back there, but I'm not sure." The duo ran down more and now hid behind the witch's chair. " Oh! There's the exit! Thanks!" the builder said, stumbling again.

"GUARDS! GET HIM!" the zombie murmured.

Two zombies approached the builder, but with lightning speed he grabbed his pick and smashed into one's gut. He turned around just in time to put a massive dent into the other's head. Grabbing the first one, he pulled him just in time to block three arrows from the skeleton, who was firing at the builder. Pushing the dead zombie aside, he built a cobblestone wall and placed a massive amount of TNT inside, building a redstone wire leading back. As the zombie king approached to break down the wall, the builder triggered the first bundle.

BOOM! The explosion blew a massive hole into the witch's room, and threw the zombie king back where a sickening crunch could be heard on the table. Nevertheless, the king got up, seeming to be OK. At that exact moment Alex sent an arrow right through his head, making sure to light the arrow so the zombie danced around in flames, before falling to the ground and lying still.

"Well, that was unexpected," the witch said. "Kill both of them!"

The rest of the monster kings turned towards Alex and the builder and started advancing. Now was the time. With a mighty yell Jerome dashed out from behind the table as Steve jumped on top, and launched himself towards the witch. Time seemed to slow down, at least for Steve. The sword was over his head as his mouth was gaped wide, yelling a battle-cry. Then time returned to normal speed and the Deathless Witch had just enough time to dodge the fiery blade as it smashed into the thick wooden table and cracked it in half. Steve threw an uppercut slice at the witch, but she jumped back, launching a flurry of poisonous and harmful potions. Steve ducked and rolled, dodging the lethal bottles as best he could. From the corner of his eyes he saw Jerome fighting the wither skeleton. Both had taken major hits, with the wither missing an arm. Dodging a potion of poison, Steve jumped up and used a wooden block as a shield as he ran for Alex, potions flying. Something hit him and he was lit on fire, but a bucket of water quickly healed it.

"Alex, cover me I'm going for the TNT."

Alex nodded, releasing a trio of flaming arrows at the witch. All missed, but one managed to catch onto her tunic, causing her to drop and roll. Steve dashed towards the builder, who was under heavy attack from the creeper and the skeleton. The creeper kept spawning more creepers that bombarded the builder's defense, while the skeleton concentrated heavy fire so that the builder couldn't fight back in an way. Steve ran up to the creeper, stabbing his sword right into it. It turned, hissing as it released three creepers. They exploded, throwing Steve back, but his armor kept him firmly standing and he rushed back up to cut one of its legs off. As the supercharged creeper fell to the ground it had one option left. Hissing loudly, it started to blink white.

"GET DOWN!" Steve yelled, jumping on top of the builder. A massive explosion blew up almost all of the throne room, bringing some pillars crashing to the ground. Steve heard a ringing in his ears, and after two minutes he stood up. The builder was coughing heavily. Steve handed him a water bottle, and he drank vigorously.

"Thanks."

"No problem. You okay?"

"Yeah, just lost some stuff."

"Like... what stuff?"

"Oh... some TNT and flint and steel and cobblestone."

"Oh. Dangit," Steve said. The builder only nodded, and they sat quietly as the dust settled.

"Well, take this iron sword. You should stay here until I come back, or the dust settles."

"Yeah ok," the builder replied, and just sat eating and drinking.

Steve ate a pork chop to replenish his hunger before grabbing his diamond sword and venturing back out. There was a massive hole where the creeper used to be. It went a good 30 or 40 blocks deep. The skeleton was up against a wall, its bow on the ground, and its helmet gone. Steve walked up to it, ending its life quickly with a stab to the head and kicking it into the crater. '_One less enemy_,' he thought. The Deathless Witch was ahead, coughing, but seeming to be unharmed. As soon as she saw Steve, she gave a yell of defiance.

"You idiot! Look at what you've done to my castle!"

"Hey shutup its your fault for keeping a creeper in your throne room!" Steve retorted.

"Yeah, and now it's time for you to die!" a third voice said.

Alex stepped from behind a downed pillar. His clothes were smoking, and some of his archer's armor was missing, but other than that his eyes still blazed with fury. There was an arrow in his bow, ready to be nocked and fired.

"W-w- how did you survive!?" the witch yelled.

"I'm not telling you! Just know that you die now."

At that moment the Deathless Witch noticed something out of the corner of her eye.

"Wither Skeleton! Help me fight them!" she yelled.

Steve and Alex turned to see the wither skeleton beside a post. Then it collapsed and fell into a bundled heap.

"It's just me!" Jerome said, drawing an iron sword.

"Oh and me!" the builder said, joining the trio.

The witch was now encircled and her doom was probable and near.

"I- I- You'll fall with me!" she exclaimed, grabbing out tons of potions. "I'll at least kill one of you!"

Just when it looked like it was over, a tide-turning event happened. From the depths of the crater rose an enchanted blaze. It rose up, and everyone turned to look at it. Suddenly, it caught fire, emitting a shrieking sound. Everyone dove out of the way as it fired a blast of five fire charges that exploded and created holes.

"My throne! It's on fire!" the witch shrieked.

The builder had already assembled a 3X4 obsidian hut and the quadruple took cover behind it as they were bombarded. As Steve, Jerome, and Alex discussed tactics, the builder was busy doing something with a crafting table.

"I've only got three arrows, and that thing is flying around like someone just hit it on the head with a shovel! I'm not wasting arrows!" Alex complained.

"Ok fine. Shooting it is out of the question. But then... what _can_ we do?" Jerome asked.

"Well, someone could be a distraction and then the others can charge it," Steve said.

"No... look it doesn't fire three charges, it fires five! What's more, it doesn't have to wait to fire again, and these ones are explosive like a ghast's!" Jerome said.

"Wait... let's try hitting it back!" Steve said.

"Well, it's worth a try," Jerome said.

Steve shot a glance at the witch and she was... gone.

"Dangit, the witch has escaped."

"Oh well let's kill this blaze first," Jerome said.

He broke a small hole in the obsidian wall, and Steve waited. The five blasts came with dead-on accuracy, and he jumped back, placing the obsidian back just in time to block four of the shots. The fifth one went in and blew a massive hole, burning.

"Take it out! Take it out!" Alex exclaimed.

Water was poured over the crater as Steve turned around.

"WAIT! Where did the builder go?!"

Looking around, Jerome found a chest.

"Look!"

After foraging inside, they found he had left the iron sword in there, as well as 2 stacks of TNT and an assortment of other useful tools.

"Wait..."

Steve looked outside, watching in horror as the builder stumbled and tripped over blocks, under total heavy fire by the blaze. In his hands were a diamond pickaxe, and all three watched as he dodged a blast, then tripping as one made a crater underneath him. However, that didn't stop him as he climbed out and with his last energy jumped up to grab the blaze by its neck with his pick. Both he and the blaze drifted into the crater, the builder slowly pulling the blaze down. Steve then watched as the whole area was lit up with fire, and he flinched back in pain, knowing that the builder must've died. But no, a stream of water appeared at the top, flowing into the crater and extinguishing the fire. More blazing light illuminated as though the builder and blaze were in a war. Then, a large amount of TNT was placed to cover the crater, and one block was primed...

CHAPTER 5 -

Steve could only duck as the third massive explosion in that short 48 hours rattled the room. Both were surely dead, and Steve wondered why that had to happen. Not forgetting it though, he, Jerome, and Alex broke the chest and took its content with them as they raced down the tunnel to follow the witch. Their compass was spinning uncontrollably again as it turned out there was no other team around them. Steve opened an iron door, finding the witch brewing potions and muttering.

"Blow her up," Steve whispered.

The three ran up to her, placing TNT all around but the front, then connected it to redstone before blowing it up from down the hallway with a button. The snickered, hearing her hit the side of the wall and falling down. Rushing out, they quickly encased her in an iron bar jail cell, leaving a small space at the very top.

"You idiots. I should've known."

"Well, you die today. Sawwy."

Steve poured lava over the top, and the witch burned, no matter how much potions of fire resistance she consumed.

"I have tons of these potions, you won't be able to kill me," Steve managed to hear.

They blocked her off with an obsidian wall around her cell, and on the outside placed TNT.

At the prized rooms they placed nuke TNT and when the witch would break out, the lava would flow over the TNT and create a chain reaction that would ultimately prime the nuke TNTs...

Of the 4,500 rebels, only 3 survived the entire battle, and Steve, Jerome, and Alex were walking back to base, where hundreds of people awaited them. A good 1,000 blocks away, a massive echo rang throughout the world, and they turned back to see a mushroom cloud ascended at the top of a mountain. They turned away, thinking of the lost ones in the fight, but now, dawn was approaching, and a new day was about to begin.


End file.
